Frank Sinatra: Swing and Dance with Frank Sinatra

Impex released 33rpm and SACD versions of this 1950 Columbia Sinatra album four years ago, with sonics fresher than ever. But I was floored by this remastered 45rpm 1-step release: Sinatra’s voice has even more reach-out-and-touch-it immediacy; the sonic picture is more open, with greater warmth, transparency, dynamic range, and sheer vividness. On some recordings from that period, vocal problems mandated Sinatra overdub his voice, and the band sounded “back there” as a result. Here, though, the instrumental solos exhibit a nearly demonstration-caliber presence. There are several new or alternate tracks, including a previously unreleased 15-minute open-mic rehearsal of “It All Depends on You” that affords a valuable peek into how Sinatra and colleagues worked together. This album marks an important watershed in Sinatra’s career. The unifying theme of “swing and dance” songs with full-bore jazz arrangements both adumbrated his great “Concept Albums” of the imminent Capitol years and announced his intention to conquer the world of jazz as completely as he had that of the ballad. With gatefold in handsome slipcase, exemplary documentation, and blissfully quiet RTI pressings, the whole package typifies the high technical excellence, peerless class, and stylish graphics of Impex releases.